Rangers FC legend, Ally McCoist, has insisted that Celtic forward, Moussa Dembele, is a highly talented footballer, but he is nowhere near worth the £40m price tag slapped on him.
The Frenchman joined Celtic in 2016 on a four-year deal from Fulham. He has impressed in his first season at the Glasgow club, scoring 32 goals in 44 appearances in all competitions.
His meteoric rise hasn’t gone unnoticed, with several heavyweight European clubs vying for his signature in the summer.
McCoist believes that Dembele has the potential to become a world class player, but certainly the hype surrounding his transfer fee has been hugely inflated this season.
Dembele has scored in all three Old Firm games this season and Celtic will look up to him to deliver once again when they face Rangers in Sunday’s shootout at Parkhead.
McCoist said as quoted by the Daily Record:
Moussa Demeble isn’t a £30million or £40million player and if Peter Lawwell – there’s a man doing his job very well – gets that then good on him.
Celtic will certainly cash in on him, there’s no doubt about that, but I’m not in the £30million or £40million brigade if you can spare me that.
He might develop into a player of that value. I like him a lot, he can finish. He’s got a good physical presence and movement. But realistically he’s not £30 million, £40 million.”
He’s certainly the most valuable player in the country. He’s young and will naturally progress. He’ll take part in the game more. He’s very much a finisher and concentrates on his finishing which is good but other parts of his game will develop.
It says a lot about his mentality that he’s scored in every Old Firm game. It’s difficult to maintain that level of quality of finishing regardless of the opposition.
If you look at his goals – particularly in Old Firm games – they’ve all been different. Headers from corners, turning Philippe Senderos at Parkhead. He’s not a one trick pony and I like that about him.
Dembele has been linked with a host of European clubs. Premier League giants, Chelsea, were reported to be planning a last minute bid for the Frenchman during the January transfer window.
Celtic are determined not to let the 20-year-old go unless they receive an astronomical offer. Dembele’s agent has said recently that the player is not looking to leave the club at this moment.
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